Microorganism News and Research

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Drugs designed to target nervous system could control inflammation in the gut, study shows

There's a reason it's called a gut feeling. The brain and the gut are connected by intricate neural networks that signal hunger and satiety, love and fear, even safety and danger. These networks employ myriad chemical signals that include dopamine, a powerful neurotransmitter most famous for its role in reward and addiction.

11 Aug 2016

Mayo researchers discover important differences in breast tissue microbiome of women with cancer

A team of Mayo Clinic researchers has identified evidence of bacteria in sterilely-obtained breast tissue and found differences between women with and without breast cancer.

3 Aug 2016

Human immune system proteins can help combat chlamydia infections

Scientists from Federal Research and Clinical Centre of Physical-Chemical Medicine, Koltzov Institute of Developmental Biology and MIPT have shown that peptidoglycan recognition proteins (PGLYRPs) of the human immune system can play a key role in the fight against chlamydia infections. Their study was published in Infection and Immunity.

28 Jul 2016

Study develops new methodology to analyse genetic bases of pathogenic bacteria

The study has developed a pioneering methodology to analyse the genetic bases of pathogenic bacteria and can be used to identify therapeutic targets in order to develop new antimicrobial agents.

20 Jul 2016

Review highlights beneficial health effects of cranberries

While decades of cranberry research has found that regular consumption of cranberry products promotes urinary tract health, leading scientists studying the bioactive components of fruits and other foods reported that cranberries possess whole body health benefits.

19 Jul 2016

Rare antibiotic compound detected in fungi for first time

Besides mushrooms such as truffles or morels, also many yeast and mould fungi, as well as other filamentous fungi belong to the Ascomycota phylum. They produce metabolic products which can act as natural antibiotics to combat bacteria and other pathogens. Penicillin, one of the oldest antibiotic agents, is probably the best known example.

18 Jul 2016

Gut microbiota could influence person's likelihood of developing colon cancer

The microscopic organisms that live in our gut do more than help us digest food. A new study in rats bolsters a growing body of evidence that the complex mix of microorganisms found in the gut, known as gut microbiota, could influence a person's likelihood of developing colon cancer.

13 Jul 2016

Scientists discover new biological defense system against pathogenic microorganisms

For the first time in the world, a group of researchers discovered a human immune receptor, which detects the invasion of pathogenic microorganisms.

13 Jul 2016

MS patients have different patterns of gut microorganisms than healthy counterparts

A connection between the bacteria living in the gut and immunological disorders such as multiple sclerosis have long been suspected, but for the first time, researchers have detected clear evidence of changes that tie the two together.

12 Jul 2016

Researchers receive $9 million grant to develop novel platform to quickly identify new antibiotics

In September 2014, President Obama issued an executive order for "Combating Antibiotic- Resistant Bacteria." Why the urgency? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the order noted, "estimates that annually at least 2 million illnesses and 23,000 deaths are caused by antibiotic- resistant bacteria in the United States alone."

11 Jul 2016

New study suggests potential role for gut microbiota in diabetes remission after bypass surgery

Studies have shown that bariatric surgery can lead to remission of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in rodents and humans, but this beneficial effect cannot be explained solely by weight loss.

11 Jul 2016

Studies shed more light on relation between bacteria, immune system and antibiotics

Antibiotics and the immune system are the two forces that cope with bacterial infections. Now, two studies from Isabel Gordo's laboratory, at Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, show for the first time that resistance to antibiotics and to the immune system is interconnected in bacteria.

4 Jul 2016

Why does appetite loss occur during illness? An interview with Prof. Conti and Prof. Francesconi

Appetite, as a word, come from the Latin appetitus, meaning "desire for.” Therefore, appetite can be defined as a pleasurable sensation or the desire to eat. This sensation is coordinated by several brain areas associated with reward processing such amygdala, hippocampus, ventral pallidum, nucleus accumbens and striatum, and others.

28 Jun 2016

Scientists insert metabolic pathway for carbon fixation and sugar production into E. coli bacterium

All life on the planet relies, in one way or another, on a process called carbon fixation: the ability of plants, algae and certain bacteria to "pump" carbon dioxide (CO2) from the environment, add solar or other energy and turn it into the sugars that are the required starting point needed for life processes.

24 Jun 2016

MAIT cells of immune system can fight all sorts of bacterial and viral infections

Oxford University research has found that a little-studied and relatively unknown part of the human immune system could be twice as important as previously thought.

23 Jun 2016

Scientists develop new software program that can help compare large amounts of metagenomes

Scientists from ITMO University, the Federal Research and Clinical Centre of Physical-Chemical Medicine and MIPT have developed a software program enabling them to quickly compare sets of DNA of microorganisms living in different environments. The researchers have already suggested exactly how the new program could be applied in practice.

16 Jun 2016

Study provides insight to gene shuffling process

Use of a new technique developed at the Babraham Institute has allowed researchers to take an in-depth look at the gene shuffling process that is responsible for our body's ability to recognise a vast range of foreign agents such as disease-causing microorganisms.

4 Jun 2016

Brief opioid exposure can cause increase in chronic pain

The dark side of painkillers - their dramatic increase in use and ability to trigger abuse, addiction and thousands of fatal overdoses annually in the United States is in the news virtually every day.

31 May 2016

New study sheds light on link between gut microbiome and the brain

Intestinal bacteria that can boost bravery or trigger multiple sclerosis: An increasing body of research results confirms the importance of the "gut-brain axis" for neurology and indicates that the triggers for a number of neurological diseases may be located in the digestive tract.

30 May 2016

PNNL scientists play central role in National Microbiome Initiative

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory are playing a central role as the nation devotes more than $500 million to understand communities of microorganisms and their role in climate science, food production and human health.

28 May 2016